A new chapter for Profane Burial.
With this third album Desolate Echoes of Turmoil, Kjetil Ytterhus (vocals/keyboards, Babels Tarn, Haimad, Khôra), André Aaslie (bass/guitar, ex-Abyssic, ex-Funeral), and Bjørn Dugstad Rønnow (drums, Borknagar, Trollfest) have signed with the label These Hands Melt.
The band enlisted Tom Alexander Trones (ex-Funeral) and Torstein J. Nipe (ex-Ansur) for certain guitar parts.
The album kicks off with a bang with Den Fortaptes Krønike, a composition that is both unsettling and majestic in its introduction but quickly transforms into an ocean of darkness once the riffs and screams really kick in, offering a dissonant and oppressive approach laced with soothing sounds, creating a rather striking contrast. The jerky progression is perfectly executed, allowing the band to explore every facet of their sound before moving into Prognostic Augural Obsolescence, which further develops the intricate side of their music through shrill leads that pair perfectly with the musicians’ assaults while remaining fully consistent with their ferocious approach. There are, however, a few calmer passages that give us a chance to catch our breath, then Triumph of Dreadful Aftermath takes over with furious Old School roots that yield gripping sections, as well as more ethereal breaks, such as when the bass takes center stage, though the violence always regains the upper hand. Channeling Epiphany offers a martial introduction before returning to its original darkness, once again standing out for its breathless approach mixed with far more theatrical and expressive touches, even featuring a stripped-down section in the middle that showcases the widest range of sounds on the album. The descent into darkness is immediate with Horror Code pt. 2, a direct sequel to the final track of the previous album, and although the tone is set, the accelerating pace slightly transforms the oppression into epic violence, multiplying the harmonics to ultimately lead into the devastating Malicious Discomfort, the album’s final composition, which doesn’t hesitate to shift from frenzied riffs to heavy orchestrations before blending them seamlessly, thereby weaving a veritable web of visceral anxiety that grows with every note.
Profane Burial is a unique project that blends majestic orchestrations with jagged darkness at a breakneck pace, making Desolate Echoes of Turmoil as surprising as devastating, and no one will be surprised if I say that its richness is matched only by its violence.
85/100